Bulky, yet Enduring
by Astral Leopard
Summary: Renji was convinced to put Tatsuki through some fighting exercises to help her spiritual energy evolve quicker and so that Shinigami and Co. would be one person stronger in their battle against the increasing number of Hollows.


**Summary:**  
Renji was convinced to put Tatsuki through some fighting exercises to help her spiritual energy evolve quicker and so that Shinigami and Co. would be one person stronger in their battle against the increasing number of Hollows. Nothing much going on in this chapter, it's a background to my Lemon on the LJ community 30 Lemons.

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Bleach and no profit is being made.

Classes had been dismissed for nearly an hour, but there were still a few unfortunate students that lingered in the hallways. The pair spent their whole detention period swearing and cussing at each other while their class representative looked on only because the teacher in charge left out of frustration. Earlier in the day Abarai Renji took his pleasure in taunting and teasing his feisty classmate during gym class, there was nothing unusual about that; however, this was a special class in that it was co-ed dodgeball. With speed and accuracy to match her temper, Arisawa Tatsuki had caught a ball and had thrown it to an unsuspecting Renji. He was too busy celebrating getting Ichigo out of the game by doing a victory dance when the ball slammed into his kneecaps and sent him sprawling to the floor.

In pain, he marched over to Tatsuki to give him a piece of his mind. They were both seeing red as their teacher screamed at them and slapped them with detention after school, during which they were to clean the gymnasium floor and organize the ball-room. It was a long hour not only for Renji and Tatsuki, but also for Hitsugaya Toshiro. The others had promised to stay with the short captain and keep him company but they left shortly after school had ended, not wanting to get involved in the ongoing quarrel between Shinigami and tomboy.

It was well after the detention when he was currently reflecting on the events that happened after the trio left the school. A Hollow, stronger than Menos Grande but not quite as strong as Aizen's minions, had appeared and blindly attacked a little girl a few blocks away from where they were walking. The two Shinigami didn't have time to hide their gigai's as they stepped out of them and instead entrusted their human shells to Tatsuki while they fought, even though they were under strict orders from Urahara not to let their mortal companions wander the streets alone.

They had almost beaten the Hollow. It was a common strategy for two partnered Shinigami in a busy civilian area, one would be cornered by the evil spirit and distract it long enough for the other Shinigami to go behind the Hollow and in this case, attack with bankai. Renji was perfectly safe in his own eyes, however a clueless tomboy thought otherwise and foolishly barged into the fight. Hitsugaya's bankai was already activated as ice began to form on the Hollow and surrounding area and just as the Hollow reached towards his face, Renji only saw their female counterpart land a solid kick to the outstretched arm.

Acting quick before the bankai was fully released, he grabbed Tatsuki when she landed in front of him and dropped them to the ground, shielding her as the Hollow was shattered. He didn't know how long they stayed in that position. All he could focus on was the body beneath his and the soft hair tickling his nose, the way her hands had instinctively grabbed onto his kimono. He did know that the moment didn't last long enough. The moment was ruined as his temporary Captain cleared his throat and Tatsuki snapping out of her adrenaline-induced shock by attempting to shove him off of her. No human had the strength to move a Shinigami, but it was cute to see her try.

Growling, he pulled herself up with him. Now standing and with no risk of a Hollow interrupting, Renji directed his pint up anger towards her. How could she have been so foolish? It was flattering in some weird way, but it was still foolish!

In the end Hitsugaya wound up walking Tatsuki home and Renji silently fumed his way to the homebase, where he was currently under interrogation by the shops owner.

He wondered if the short captain was successful in bringing her home. Of course he was, it wasn't a mission full of hidden dangers and deadly obstacles but there was still a little nagging inside of him that was slightly put off. The nagging coming from Urahara didn't help his situation either. Tuning out the 'Mr. Freeloader' speech, he concentrated on the food growing cold laying the table in front of him. It was rude to eat when you were being told off.

Tatsuki's name being spoken from the other man's lips brought him out of his staring contest with the rice bowl. "Eh?"  
"I didn't think you were listening, Freeloader-san." Urahara tipped his trademark hat so it hid his eyes. "I was making you a proposition."

Curious, Renji leaned forward to listen with his full attention. He was never comfortable being alone with the other man, there was something about him that him feel... vulnerable. Maybe it was the way he could look at a man and tell his lifestory with that single glance or maybe it was because no matter how hard he masked his spiritual power it still managed to practically ooze out of him. Renji always felt his power sweeping over his skin whenever they were close. Being alone with him in such close quarters, he could feel the cool energy dancing on his body and he was trying his hardest not to flee away from his food. He wasn't a great multi-tasker.

He stood up and started pacing the room while Urahara spoke of the time he first met Tatsuki. Kidnapping her and a bunch of other classmates was an ultimate test for Ichigo and his friends to see if they could work together as a team under such stressful conditions, in the end they won the innocents back and Urahara had discovered Tatsuki's high spiritual energy.

"It was a shame it wasn't fully developed then," he said with a sigh. "Although lately with all the Hollow attacks it's been progressing rather nicely."

Renji didn't see what this had to do with him. "Che, your point being?"

"My point being, Freeloader-san," Urahara took a dramatic pause to have a drink of sake, "We love having you here but you need to start pulling your weight around."

"What do you think i've been doing? I've been off fighting Hollows with everyone else and i've been going to human school. What more can I do!" He said indignantly, not knowing where this conversation was heading.

"Arisawa-chan is an interesting case. She doesn't have powers like what Inoue-chan or Sado-kun have, instead she's more like our Ichigo. Truth be told, she'd make an interesting Shinigami but I don't want to risk putting her through the training like boy-wonder went through..." He trailed off in hopes the other man caught onto his train of thought. Renji was still clueless. "I want you to put her through some physical training."

Surprised, Renji stopped his pacing to give him an incredulous look. "You can't be serious."

"I am. I would do it myself; however, Yoruichi-san and I have a project underfoot that is going to require my immediate attention for the next few days."

"You can't expect me to train her! She doesn't listen to anything I say!" He spat. "Get someone else to do it, I'm pretty sure Shorty is free."

"Hitsugaya-san isn't a freeloader in my house. We need all the fighting power we can get, Abarai-kun, you will do this for the team or you will be out of a place to live and without free food."

Renji knew he was serious in kicking him out of the shop. Angry at himself for being so weak willed, he picked up the rice bowl and quickly shoveled some nutrients into his mouth before setting off to Ichigo's house. As he left the house he heard Urahara's voice calling out behind him, "You can use my secret area for training, Abarai-kun!"

Shuffling his feet and kicking up some loose pebbles in the process, Renji thought about the situation he somehow dug his way into. In some ways he was giddy at idea of spending all that time with Tatsuki in that way, he found her beautiful when she fought, but in other ways he was dreading it. Her language was foul and her temperament was unpredictable; much like his own which was why they could never get along in a social situation.

Ichigo would know what to do. He hated to admit he needed help with approaching the situation but he knew he could count on the temporary Shinigami, he heard somewhere that Ichigo and Tatsuki used to be best friends. If that was truly the case then maybe he could give Renji pointers on how to talk to her. Not like they were going to be doing a lot of talking, but for future references and he still needed to actually persuade her to go into the training grounds with him.

It was a short walk to the Kurosaki house and he soon found himself leaping through the open window that lead into Ichigo's bedroom. Strange. Renji expected to find him sitting pitifully alone in his bedroom since it was late at night and he had no life, but he wasn't anywhere to be found so he made himself at home on the bed.

Closing his eyes, he tried imaging what he could possibly say to Tatsuki. He wasn't used to talking about the powers he possessed as a Shinigami and he certainly wasn't used to training anyone with the art of combat, no matter how he looked at it - the situation was going to be awkward.

"Oi, What the fuck are you doing in my room!" He hadn't sensed Ichigo's presense until the said teenager started yelling at him.

"Baka, what do you think? Waiting for you obviously." Sitting up, Renji waited until he closed the door before blurting out his current predicament. He could tell Ichigo was surprised with the news but then again, he always had a stupid lost look on his face.

"And what do you want me to do about it?" He began to ask, "You want me to help you train her?"

Renji peeked up at the thought. Urahara said nothing about having to be alone with her while they trained. "Would you? That'd be great, I'd really owe you one."

"Che, like I'd ever do that. It's too troublesome," Ichigo said. "Besides, I have school. Unlike certain Shinigami's, there's some of us who'll have an attendance record following us around for the rest of our lives. It'd be suspicious if both Tats and I were absent."

His heart plummeted along with all hope of surviving the next few days.

Seeing his comrade turn paler than humanly possible, Ichigo made a feeble attempt in reassurance, "If it bothers you that much then I'll be with you when you tell her. Kuso, I never thought you would be so weak when it came to girls."

"She's not a girl, baka," he said wide-eyed. "Arisawa is a demon-bitch. I swear she lives to make me miserable."

Ichigo wisely chose not to comment on his gripes and instead focused on getting in his pajama's. Stripping out of his lounge wear for around the house he asked if the significantly older man was going to be spending the night. Weighing the pros and cons of sleeping in the closet very carefully he decided it would be best to sleep there, that way he might run into Tatsuki before school and not have to confront her in front of all of their peers. Ignoring Ichigo's before-bedtime-rambles, he crawled into the closet to sleep.

Despite his inability to get more than a few hours of sleep Renji woke up feeling rather refreshed and ready to take on the world. That was before he remembered everything. Neither of the bedrooms occupants were morning people and they tried staying out of each others way as much as they physically could but accidents happen, fists flew and objects were thrown. Ichigo's bedroom looked like a battlescene by the time they had finally left, although as a result Renji was feeling slightly better about facing the day.  
Fate was against him that day. Renji seethed in annoyance. He and Ichigo had left the house at the time that would allow them to meet up with Tatsuki at the usual place she gets together to walk with Ichigo, but she hadn't shown. The pair brushed it off thinking it was not a big deal. However, it was a big deal now that class had started and the said girl was missing from her seat.

He glared at the captain sitting a few desks ahead of him. It was all Hitsugaya's fault.

Time seemed to dribble as slowly as molasses pouring off of a jar and classes seemed so dull without having that demon-girl to tease. It was funny how a person doesn't appreciate the company of a rival until that rival is absent from class. Lunch break finally came and Shinigami and Company made their way to their usual gathering spot where they discovered Tatsuki already waiting and leaning comfortably against a tree.

Ignoring the warning shouts from his captain, Renji stormed his way over to face her. "Where the hell have you been?"

"Shit happened, not like it's any of your business," Tatsuki retorted.

"It is my goddamned business since I have some business to discuss with you," he growled. Thankfully Ichigo appeared behind him and placed a hand on his shoulder. Whether it was to hold him back from physically strangling the tomboy or to offer some sort of reassurance he didn't know.

The trio distanced themselves from the group as Ichigo and Renji did their best to explain the situation to her. During the explanation Renji felt her eye him doubtfully.

"Why can't Orihime train me?" She asked even though she already knew the answer.

"Che, do you honestly think she can teach you how to fight?" Renji laughed. "Better than you already can that is. I know you taught her Karate, but..."

"But you don't have special powers like what they do. You're like me, Tats," Ichigo said.

It was sort of cute the way she squared her shoulders trying to look as if the news didn't phase her. Her body language screamed she wasn't happy with the situation, but like a true warrior (and Shinigami at heart) she agreed to the training - she would do anything to help her friends and would take this training seriously.

Since Tatsuki was already marked absent for the day and Renji was prone to skipping class, they two decided it would be best to start right away. For once they were silent. They walked in total silence towards the Shop, granted it wasn't a comfortable silence but it was a step up from their usual bickering and verbal assaults.

They stepped into the Shop and Renji called out to announce their arrival. The shop was eerily quiet. He assumed Urahara and his minions were working on the special project with Yoruichi that was mentioned earlier, and shrugged off the feeling of total abandonment. Motioning for the curious Tatsuki to follow him into a room deep into the shop, he waited for the inevitable questions to sound. Why was the shop so big when it looked so small from the outside? What are all those foreign objects sitting on the shelves? Even though he had seen the girl in the shop before, he knew she had questions that she never voiced. Any sane person would have questions about a shop like that. He noted that was a feature he admired in her; she took things as they came without a question unless the situation involved the safety of her friends, then she wanted to know every little detail and specifics.

Walking into the room he tried remembering which tile it was that lead down to the training area. After stumbling about for a few minutes, he found the floormat and carefully moved it aside.

"You're kidding me," Tatsuki looked over his shoulder in bewilderment. "That actually exists under this shop? We're actually going down that big ass ladder!"

"I can't believe you're afraid of heights," he laughed, silently cooing at finding a weakness.

She growled in response, "Why is that so hard to believe?"

"No reason. I like knowing my rivals weaknesses." Impatient to get their session started, he started down the ladder. Renji could understand her fear, as a Shinigami he didn't need to bother with mortal fears, but there remained a part of him that still reacted in a human way to certain phobias. Fortunately heights wasn't one of them.

**/ end of chapter one. **  
_Next_: Chapter Two - Renji and Tatsuki battle (training and otherwise)  
Please review. I don't have proofreaders so any feedback would be greatly appreciated bows Thank you for reading.


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